While it definitely was not pretty at times, Iowa Men's Basketball earned its third win of the young season on Friday night.
The Hawkeyes (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten) started the game against Xavier (2-2, 0-0 Big East) with multiple turnovers, which allowed Xavier to take an early lead.
Xavier's lead only got as high as three points as the Hawkeyes ramped up the defensive pressure to close out the first half.
Iowa's defense allowed them to go on an 11-0 scoring run to end the first half, and they used the charity stripe (12/17) to take a 16-point lead into halftime.
Iowa once again had a rocky start to the half, turning the ball over multiple times and earning a flagrant foul to allow Xavier to close the gap.
After a brief scare from the Musketeers, the Hawkeye lead ballooned to as much as 20, and they would go on to win 81-62.
Bennett Stirtz led all scorers with 21 points and added eight rebounds and three assists. Tavion Banks added 13 points and five rebounds, while Cam Manyawu notched a near double-double with nine points and nine rebounds.
Iowa must continue playing fast on both ends
The Hawkeyes do not start a traditional big man down low and prefer to pressure the ball rather than block a ton of shots.
Iowa continues to excel at converting turnovers into quick baskets on the other end, as demonstrated against Xavier.
The squad scored 18 points off 12 Xavier turnovers and was harassing the Musketeers all over the court.
Iowa is also at its best when it moves the ball quickly in transition or with quick passes in the half-court. When the ball movement slows down or players get caught watching Stirtz in the half-court offense, Iowa struggles to get quality shots.
The faster Iowa plays, the better.
Trevin Jirak and Tate Sage will play key roles off the bench this season
While freshmen Trevin Jirak and Tate Sage's numbers might not jump off the page on most nights, they have provided great energy off the bench to begin the season.
Sage is a versatile and athletic wing who can stretch the floor with his three-point shooting ability and throw down some ferocious dunks at the rim.
He also puts a lot of energy into his defense, and his length causes havoc on the defensive end of the court.
Jirak gives the Hawkeyes more size down low and has shown the ability to hang with bigs on the perimeter as well as bang in the paint.
He is also an extremely underrated passer who has been excelling at hitting open teammates on flare screens or back cuts.
If the two fabulous freshmen can continue to develop in McCollum's system, they will likely see expanded roles in the future.
If the Hawkeyes can continue playing solid defense and upping the tempo on both ends of the court, they have the potential to win some big games in Big Ten Conference play this season.
Next game: vs. Missouri State on Tuesday, November 18, at 7:30 p.m. Central Time.